One in four men suffer 'man periods'

At some point in their lives women all over the world have found themselves curled up on the sofa with a hot water bottle on their tummy and a bar of chocolate in their hand, cursing whoever came up with the concept of periods. Premenstrual syndrome can include cramps, tiredness, irritability, cravings and being easily upset, and now one in four men claim they also suffer from monthly 'man periods'.

The survey, by vouchercloud.co.uk, polled 2,412 people who had been in a relationship for a minimum of 12 months. Half of the participants were male and the poll found that 26 per cent of them suffered from symptoms associated with menstruation.

Their female partners didn't always scoff at this notion either, with almost two thirds agreeing that 'man periods' exist. A fifth of females involved in the survey even claimed their male mate struggled more with his time of the month.

The biggest symptom for men was irritability at 56 per cent, with being more tired than normal coming second with 51 per cent. 47 per cent said they had increased cravings, with the feeling of constant hunger being a factor for 43 per cent of men surveyed.

The same number of men also said they were more easily upset during their period while 15 per cent said they felt bloated.

Having to go through all this themselves means many women were sympathetic to their partners needs during that time, with 43 per cent admitting they offered special support when the man in their life was having his time of the month.

Dr Jed Diamond, author of The Irritable Male agrees that men can and do suffer man periods, calling the condition Irritable Male Syndrome. "It is assumed that women are hormonal and men are moved more by logic," he wrote in his book, according to Britain's The Telegraph newspaper. "But men have a number of hormonal cycles and these affect their level of energy, anger, sex drive and irritability."

The concept of man periods have long been studied – with many researchers believing levels of male hormones fluctuate with the moon’s cycle.